Kate (2021)
“Less talking, more thinking.” – Kate.
Kate (2021)
Directed by: Cedric Nicolas-Troyan
Written by: Umair Aleem
Starring: Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Woody Harrelson, Miku Patricia Martineau
You wouldn’t believe it, but there’s ANOTHER assassin thriller on Netflix that was produced by David Leitch. It’s generic, it’s predictable, it’s got most of the same assassin genre clichés. But hey, I’m an idiot so I watched it anyway. And…it was actually not completely terrible. I actually found myself enjoying it at some points.
The film follows Kate (Winstead), a deadly female assassin who plans on ‘getting out’ (cliché #1). However, on her last job, she gets poisoned and therefore has to work out who is trying to kill her (cliché #2). On this voyage she must rely on the assistance of a young girl, Ani (Martineau), and her ‘handler and mentor’, Varrick (Harrellson).
I came into this movie expecting very little, as the latest female-led assassin Netflix thriller I watched was Ava – and that was complete garbage. So, I was extremely surprised when I found myself enjoying the first thirty minutes. The choreography was genuinely entertaining, Winstead was kicking some serious butt, and the Tokyo backdrop was very pretty. To be fair, this might be the main reason it looked so good – Tokyo is such a fun and vibrant city, the neon-lit cityscape it lends itself to exciting car chases and extended hand-to-hand combat. The main character, Kate, is also a no-nonsense assassin, so if you don’t answer her questions, she’ll just kill you. I liked the simplicity of this.
However, outside of this, it’s really just ‘another good looking action movie.’ The story is cookie-cutter with a “SHOCKING” reveal in the final act that everyone will guess, the sidekick Ani is super fucking annoying, and there’s no real connection to any of the characters to make you feel invested.
In conclusion, I was pretty impressed with the visuals, and the choreography made for some genuinely entertaining action. It’s a massive improvement on ‘Ava’, but like I said about this years ‘Nobody’, the story is just some more boring, uninspired, ‘safe’ writing. Therefore come and watch it for the action, but don’t expect too much.
Rating = 6/10